Nena Arias | July 31, 2023
“So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ”
(Romans 10:17).
Fixing the problems of the world would be so easy to fix if only we would adhere and apply the truth God has established in his Word. The world would feel the greatest impact ever recorded in any civilization because all the distorted, erroneous ideas that mess up society and our lives would immediately be overturned.
The question is, if we have had God’s written word for so long, and has been passed on from generation to generation, and it is the best seller of all-time, why is this invincible truth not impacting the world in a greater dimension? Especially today when we have so much excellent technology for communication to spread this truth and so many people in the world claim to be professing Christians, the world should be in much better shape.
Sadly, there can only be one very simple answer to that question, that is that the majority of Christians do not believe the truth they profess. Too many are not allowing God’s truth to truly shape and sustain their faith. Millions upon millions freely talk about the truth of God without ever truly living it. That fact alone will only make people religious, and they will not be participating in the essence of what God wants us to experience in our faith.
Jesus said those who are truly his will be known by their fruits (Matthew 7:15-23). The fruit of true believers is supposed to impact their culture. I am aware there are converts to Christ in nations dominated by religions such as Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, or the Marxist ideology that find it very difficult to transform their culture because they are a very small minority. Nevertheless, true believers don’t bend or cave in and that may mean many of them will pay the ultimate price for their Christian faith by losing their life, suffering imprisonment, or robbed of their possessions. So, those types of Christians are already heroes of the faith.
The obvious question is where are those who live in nations influenced by Western culture and have their foundation in biblical perspective? We have only to observe the condition of their societies as sufficient evidence to affirm that they do not believe the Christian faith they so proudly profess.
The truth of God as revealed in the Scriptures, should guide us to a life consistent with this truth that has set us free. This liberating truth makes no concessions; it does not bend under pressure and does not flee from adversity.
Over two thousand years of Christian history bears record of exemplary lives that, as they lived and followed Scriptural truth, they left their powerfully positive footprint in the society where they lived.
Accepting to be a follower of Jesus Christ is to accept the mission that comes with that commitment. The mission is to put an end to injustice and reform the social structure, including the church. If you say you have converted to a new life in Jesus Christ, you are also accepting all the responsibilities that come with that new life. I am not referring to the “modern conversions” that are readily seen in Christianity today based on a mere emotional experience. A genuine conversion to Christ produces powerful results because it is resting solidly on God’s truth which will always bare the fruit that it is supposed to.
When Christians abandon the truth of Scripture, not only does their faith collapse but also their family and social life. This rebellion toward God and His word should not be taken lightly or overlooked. We should not accept to be a part of hypocrisy or of those who fail to respect God’s word, something that happens in so many congregations all too frequently and in turn debilitates and destroys the transforming power of the Good News of the Kingdom for humanity. Excluding God’s truth annihilates true faith because it has no solid footing. Always remember that your faith is nourished by the truth revealed in Scripture.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith,
and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God”
(Ephesians 2:8).
“So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ”
(Romans 10:17).